Russell Pike Landscape Photography

Soooooo what have we been up too. Well we finished our working stint over a week ago, so without wasting a second we took off on the Indian Ocean Drive in our trusty crap camper to see the iconic pinnacles desert which lies 250km north of Mandurah. A few hours later and we rolled quietly into the desert on the semi sealed track among the limestone spires. This is a one eerie place, especially at dawn and dusk when there’s no one around. Making photos here was very challenging as at first sight it all looks the same, but as you frame the scene you start getting picky about which pinnacles you want in the limelight (ba dump dump chshshshshshshsh) So I spent most of the time walking around for that cluster of pointed tall proper pinnacle looking pinnacles. Three days spent there is a little too much if you ask me, a day is enough, although that all changes if you’re a landscape photographer.

As I write this, we are camping down at Margert River, Ellenbrook car park to be precise which is home to some class waves such as the womb and sucky lefts. I managed to surf bunker bay all to myself which was a little nerving the other day. Unfortunately a lad was killed there by a great white a few weeks back. Rest his soul. This could of happen on any beach in WA, but that fact didn’t put my mind at ease, it was pumping but. Then with a surf at Boojiup the other day, wetsuit half on in the car park and the ranger comes along and slams a beach closed shark’s sign in front of me, a quick chat and it turns out there was one spotted and reported an hour ago. She did make it clear that she wasn’t stopping us from going in so in we when. Safety in numbers was my thinking. It’s funny what the surf makes you do, to think of it away from the coast I would say no to going in with sharks about, but one look at the surf and you push all the David Attenborough footage and quotes aside.

Just had a mammoth dawn session at gas this morning before the winds got the better of it, 6am start with just two other bodyboarders on it, and this was a Saturday morning too? I didn’t understand it either but I'm not complaining that’s for sure. More fun than you can shake a stick at, it’s pure heaven. These photos below where taken just before the wind got on it. You should have seen it at first light, it was silky.

Right I’m off to think about how I can thief Racetracks as well as Gas, Chow for now J